We "serfs" squabble among each other about the issues of here and now, but where is the perspective?
The fall of Rome:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNWBgRWn9YM
Oh the parallels between Rome and the US in the modern day..
Also, as described here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fbvquHSPJU
And further written about in the companion to the above documentary:
http://pinxit.com/page67/downloads-20/files/FOUR_HORSEMEN_BOOK.pdf
From the PDF:
"Every new empire begins with the age of the pioneers, courageous individuals
with passion and vision who conquer new territories, perhaps taking over the
remnants of an earlier collapsed civilization. The new empire then enters an
age of commerce. Great wealth is created through enterprise and trade, making
use of the best cultural traits and technological achievements of the vanquished
empire. Next comes the age of affluence, a critical juncture in the life cycle of
an empire and the time when things begin to go wrong. In the age of affluence,
Glubb says, "there does not appear to be any doubt that money is the agent
which causes the decline of this strong, brave and self-confident people."
Decline occurs slowly, however, for next comes the age of intellect, when
affluence is sufficient to allow some people to dedicate themselves to the
pursuit of knowledge. Glubb argues that an excessive focus on intellect
indicates an empire already in serious trouble. This may feel counter-intuitive,
but evidence suggests that our own age of intellect has done little to prevent a
headlong descent into the final age: the age of decadence.
In the age of decadence many people choose to behave in ways that are
unsustainable, apparently unaware of the consequences. They indulge in
excessive, often conspicuous, consumption. An absurdly wealthy elite
emerges, but instead of repelling the masses it is admired and celebrated.
Those outside the elite aspire to similar levels of consumption, and are
encouraged by the availability of cheap credit. People become convinced that
increased consumption is the key to happiness, but in its pursuit they become
measurably less happy. As David Morgan says, "you can never get enough of
what you don't need."
At this point in the life cycle of an empire frivolity, as Glubb calls it, comes to
the fore. In order to distract people from what's really going on, the economy
creates diversions. Voyeurism becomes central to culture: the gladiatorial
spectacles in decadent Rome are mirrored in today's 'reality' television.
People become fixated on celebrity as the genuinely noteworthty become
understandably camera shy. These invented celebrities are 'famous' just for
being famous. In every era the obsession with celebrity glorifies many of the
same professions. During the final decades of their own empires, the Romans,
the Ottomans and the Spanish all made celebrities of their chefs. Sound
familiar? And voyeurism takes on a more sinister aspect as people become
desensitized to graphic images of extreme violence. The BBC treats us to the
last desperate moments of Colonel Gaddafi's life, broadcast live in close-up
detail. Elsewhere, there is mock outrage from the tabloid press when we learn
that hundreds of people paid to watch a cage fight between two eight-year-old
boys.
Debauchery is another recurring theme at the end of empire. Society develops
a strangely immature obsession with sex. People drink themselves to the point
of unconsciousness and shamelessly collapse in the street. In Roman times,
binge drinkers were left to their fate. Today's debauchery is supervised by the
police; its 'victims' are taken care of by hard-pressed health care
professionals, placing further pressure on the public purse. And, all the while,
supermarkets and corporations make a killing selling discounted booze to
people barely old enough to buy it. This is our modern-day bread and circuses,
with obese citizens literally becoming a burden on the state.
But the small can never satisfy the large. Cheap pleasures fail to compensate
for the absence of meaning in so many people's lives. A hankering for
something greater remains. At the fag end of empire, growing numbers are
denied access to work; they can find no meaningful involvement in their
community, so their potential goes unfulfilled. When people are prevented
from fulfilling their potential, they often self-destruct. As Camila
Batmangeilidgh says, "Human beings are fundamentally organized around the
need for meaning. Having meaning for why you live your life, and having a
sense that your life has a destination or a purpose, is an important organizer of
individuals' lives and also communities' lives."
Other symptoms common to empires in decline include massive disparities
between rich and poor, an undisciplined and over-extended military, and a
severe financial and economic crisis linked to a debasement of the currency.
Great empire wealth dazzles, but beneath the surface the unbridled desire for
money, power and material possessions means that principles of duty and
public service are corrupted by leaders and citizens who scramble for the
meager spoils of an economic system which prioritizes the wrong things "and
all at a time when human industry and ingenuity have been needlessly
repressed."